Switching Election Day A Hot Issue

Tamarac Voters Tackle Changing The Charter

TAMARAC — It looked to be a low-key election about a simple issue: switching Election Day for City Commission races from March to November.

But in the days leading to Tuesday's vote, there have been legal threats and outbursts at public meetings.

City Hall's proposed charter change is meant partly to save big money. Because March elections tend to spark less interest, the city would roll them over to November when more voters typically show up for state and national races.

City activist Patti Lynn initially said she supported the change because March elections are "a waste of money." But now, she has reservations and has been handing out fliers at homeowner association meetings and garage sales urging people to vote against the charter change.

If the measure passes, term limits for mayor and city commissioners would remain the same. An elected official can serve only a maximum of three successive terms in the same office. But the length of terms would change from three to four years, to coincide with the November cycle of general elections, which take place on even-numbered years.

"I support the change, but I don't support it with this commission," she said, explaining that she does not want the current commissioners to stay in office longer than they were elected for.

Lynn's flier states: "As soon as all five of the current elected officials in Tamarac are out of office, then, I think that Tamarac's residents should consider moving all elections to November."

The flier, which also criticizes city officials for salary increases that were recently passed, includes, at bottom, the words: "Paid political advertisement by Patti Lynn ... No candidate approved this message."

The city is incensed.

City Attorney Sam Goren was instructed to send a certified letter telling Lynn to "cease and desist" passing out the fliers. He wrote in the Oct. 18 letter that the flier must have a "specific statutory disclaimer." This means Lynn omitted the words, "Electioneering Communication."

"In addition, the information contained in the flier is false, misleading and inaccurate. The willful transmission of such inaccurate and misleading information ... may subject you to criminal penalties ... Please govern yourself accordingly," he wrote in the letter.

"She needs to consult with an attorney," Goren said later. "We're giving her the best advice we can to protect herself and the people affected by her letter."

Lynn also received a verbal lashing at an Oct. 23 public meeting from Vice Mayor Ed Portner, who called her an "agitated activist."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Portner told her. "What you have put out is a bunch of lies ... People like you ... prevent progress. Change happens. When you come to realize it, perhaps you'll be better off.

"You are part of the problem, you are not part of the solution," Portner told her.

After the meeting, Lynn said she would "absolutely not" stop speaking her mind.

The city budgeted almost $32,000 to encourage voters to pass the initiative, including $20,000 in direct mail; $400 for posters in public buildings; $2,500 for fliers and $4,500 in newspaper ads.

On election years that don't include a regularly scheduled county election, the city must bear the entire cost of conducting one, including hiring and training poll workers, city spokeswoman Lucy Crockett said. This year's March city election cost taxpayers $80,000 -- and less than 19 percent of the voters participated.

In order for the election cycle to kick in, commissioners in Districts 1 and 3, currently Portner and Marc Sultanof, respectively, would serve an extra eight months in office. The next election would be in November 2008, when those two seats would be up for election, instead of March of that year. So, those seats would be up for election again in 2012.

Commissioners in Districts 2 and 4, currently Patte Atkins-Grad and Harry Dressler, and the mayor, Beth Flansbaum-Talabisco, were elected this March and are up for re-election in March 2009.

If the measure is approved, those three would serve an additional eight months to make the transition to a November 2009 election. Those elected in November 2009 would serve a five-year term; this would be a one-time occurrence to take those elected to an even year.

In 2014, elections would be conducted for Districts 2, 4 and for mayor. Those elected would serve a regular four-year term and the transition to the new schedule would be complete.

Because of the change in term lengths, the maximum successive time spent in the same office would increase from nine to 12 years.

Flansbaum-Talabisco said the city is not trying to silence its critics.

"Anybody can put out whatever they want. If we have to put in an accurate disclaimer, so does everybody else," she said. "Everybody is entitled to their opinion. There are laws, we have to follow the laws, that's all we are saying."

Still, Lynn planned to continue distributing the fliers.

"I'm not going to cease and desist. I am an American citizen," she said. "There's nothing untrue in the flier and my right to dissent is being threatened. Their actions are much more egregious than mine."

Lisa J. Huriash can be reached at lhuriash@sun-sentinel.com or 954-572-2008.